The neurotechnology patent landscape in a time of neuroethics : 2016-2020
department or school: Medicine, Faculty of
department or school: Medicine, Department of
data provider: DSpace
degree campus: UBCV
creator: Rotenberg, Ari
issued: 2023-10-12T19:17:45Z
issued: 2023
related degree: Master of Science - MSc
degree grantor: University of British Columbia
description: Over the past decades, invasive and non-invasive neuromodulation approaches have emerged to manage neurologic and psychiatric conditions, along with powerful functional neuroimaging methods that provide insights to the physiologic bases for cognition and behavior. However, new capabilities realized by neurotechnology also introduce new concerns. Neurotechnology has proliferated into industries such as defense, advertising, and retail, evolving in ways that may impinge on the privacy of thought and create injustices in human performance. In these contexts, newfound access to the brain raises broad concerns for human rights. In this thesis, I examine 779 patents granted by the USPTO between 2016 and 2020 as a publicly accessible record of inventions early in commercial development to understand the characteristics of neurotechnology innovation and assess their ethical and social implications. By applying qualitative methods to existing patent infrastructure, I develop a perspective of an innovation landscape rooted strongly in healthcare. Neuromodulation is most prominent, with conditions affecting the injured or aging brain a substantial focus. Neurotechnology across other industries such as entertainment and finance raise concerns about consent and coercion. I further consider how these inventions may support or impede the mental protections proposed by neurorights advocates. With some concerns identified in past work and in this thesis, anticipating that more ethically fraught innovation may come down the commercial pipeline is a critical exercise. Such a practice is also fundamental to the anticipatory tenet of neuroethics. To this end, I conclude by welcoming patent experts into the neuroethics circle, and at the same time urge ongoing attention to the patent landscape as a means of informing outreach and ensuring long term societal benefits.
aggregated CHO: https://circle.library.ubc.ca/rest/handle/2429/86129
note: THE NEUROTECHNOLOGY PATENT LANDSCAPE IN A TIME OF NEUROETHICS: 2016-2020 by Ari Rotenberg B.A., University of British Columbia, 2021 A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF SCIENCE in THE FACULTY OF GRADUATE AND POSTDOCTORAL STUDIES (Experimental Medicine) THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA (Vancouver) October 2023 © Ari Rotenberg, 2023 ii The following individuals certify that they have read, and recommend to the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies for acceptance, a thesis entitled: The Neurotechnology Patent Landscape in a Time of Neuroethics: 2016-2020 Submitted by Ari Rotenberg in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Experimental Medicine. Examining Committee: Dr. Judy Illes, Professor, Neurology, University of British Columbia Supervisor Dr. Zelma Kiss, Professor, Neurosurgery, University of Calgary Supervisory Committee Member Dr. Paul Pavlidis Professor, Psychiatry, University of British Columbia Supervisory Committee Member iii Abstract Over the past decades, invasive and non-invasive neuromodulation approaches have emerged to manage neurologic and psychiatric conditions, along with powerful functional neuroimaging methods that provide insights to the physiologic bases for cognition and behavior. However, new capabilities realized by neurotechnology also introduce new concerns. Neurotechnology has proliferated into industries such as defense, advertising, and retail, evolving in ways that may impinge on the privacy of thought and create injustices in human performance. In these contexts, newfound access to the brain raises broad concerns for human rights. In this thesis, I examine 779 patents granted by the USPTO between 2016 and 2020 as a publicly accessible record of inventions early in commercial development to understand the characteristics of neurotechnology innovation and assess their ethical and social implications. By applying qualitative methods to e…
has type: Thesis/Dissertation
date issued: 2023-11
is shown at: 10.14288/1.0437129
language: eng
degree discipline: Experimental Medicine
provider: Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library
publisher: University of British Columbia
rights: Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International
rights URI: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/
scholar level: Graduate
contributor: Illes, Judy
type: Text
identifier URI: http://hdl.handle.net/2429/86129